Chapter 1 Glossary

scientific approach: a way of using unbiased observation to form and test beliefs. The systematic observation that scientists use is very different from unsystematic observation because scientists (a) strive to make objective observations and (b) pay proper attention to observations that appear to go against the researcher's hypothesis. (p. 3)

replicate: repeat. A skeptical researcher should be able to repeat (replicate) another researcher’s study and obtain the same pattern of results. One key to a replicable study is having objective operational definitions of your variables. (p. 11)

operational definition: a “recipe” for how you are going to measure or manipulate a variable; the specific, observable, concrete steps involved in measuring or manipulating that particular factor. (p. 7)

testable: verifiable; capable of being disproven, corrected, or revised based on the evidence. Statements may fail to be testable if they are vague or if they are made after the fact. Scientific hypotheses must be testable. (p. 5)

objective evidence: unbiased; based on observable, physical evidence that looks the same to all observers. (p. 4)

 

anecdotal evidence: evidence consisting of one or more stories, cases, or examples. Because these cases are often impossible to replicate and are usually based on uncontrolled observations, such evidence should raise questions like Because these cases are often impossible to replicate and are usually based on uncontrolled observations, such evidence should raise questions like "Is this story reporting a typical cases or an unusual case?", "Is the relationship reported the result of a coincidence?",  and "How is bias affecting
the story?"
 In short, even when such evidence is based on objective observations, drawing conclusions from anecdotal evidence is risky. As many have said, "stories are not science." (p. 9)

 

 

 


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